1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to cloth having an image of an actual color or black and white photograph laminated to its surface for decorative or other functional purpose, the cloth laminate being washable with no substantial alteration of the color or black and white image.
2. Description of the Prior Art
It is known in the prior art to prepare patterns typewritten on cloth with ribbon ink in response to typewriter commands generated by a computer responsive to the light intensity measured along various points of an image to be reproduced upon the cloth. This method is different from, and does not produce a product having the same fidelity of reproduction of, the present invention, which uses an actual photograph positive print as the basis for the laminate produced. When the photograph is a color positive print, the laminate produced will be in color, unlike such computer printouts, which ordinarily are restricted to a single color of printing ink, such as brown.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,537,097, issued to Slifkin, discloses a treatment of textile material with certain light sensitive compositions. Rick, in U.S. Pat. No. 2,756,434, teaches a pattern paper temporarily bonded to a textile material, where the pattern paper is removed from the textile material after certain sewing or embroidering operations are completed. The Miles Kimball, Fall 1975 Catalog, pages 158 and 193, shows a cotton and polyester shirt screened with a photograph, and a pillow having an enlarged reproduction of a photograph.
A drawback associated with prior art devices is failure to provide a laminate with sufficient permanence to withstand washing of the cloth with substantially no alteration of the photographic design. A further shortcoming of prior art processes is the time required in application of the various layers making up the laminate, increasing the cost and time required to produce the final article.